VIERA’S Todd Pokrywa FEATURED IN ORLANDO BUSINESS JOURNAL

June 29, 2026 – Todd Pokrywa is the President, The Viera Company, & Chief Operating Officer, Real Estate Group, A. Duda & Sons, Inc., and he was recently interviewed by Orlando Business Journal. Here are some insights from that article.

Orlando Business Journal (OBJ): What attracted you to a career in this industry?

I have a passion for community building. While studying urban planning at Canada’s University of Waterloo in the early 1990s, I researched Viera as my case study, while the community’s development was in its infancy, as a model for planning for growth and urban sprawl. The opportunity to guide master-planned communities, shaping how people live, work and play, is a focus of my career.

OBJ: What are you most proud of accomplishing in your career so far? 

What I’m most proud of accomplishing is building and leading the right team. Like Herb Brooks, coach of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team said, “I’m not looking for the best players, I’m looking for the right ones.” Leading talented professionals as they come together around a shared vision is incredibly rewarding. Any success is a reflection of the team around me.

What is a common misconception about your profession/industry?

A common misconception about master-planned community development is that it’s primarily about building houses or transactional real estate sales. In reality, this industry is far more long-term and strategic: It involves land use planning, infrastructure coordination, entitlements, public-private partnerships and decades-long commitment to innovation and building value.

In your specialty areas, what issues are the most pressing?

A pressing issue is housing affordability and supply — especially in the fast-growing Florida market where demand outpaces available housing. Master-planned communities like Viera create not just new supply but neighborhoods designed with various price points and housing types. Another is creating complete communities with jobs, schools, parks, healthcare, retail and transportation connectivity.

What are a few milestones among your career goals?

Key milestones in my career include securing entitlements and approvals for the residential expansion of Lakewood Ranch into Sarasota County, as well as new mixed-use areas north of State Road 70 in Manatee County while at SMR; securing entitlements through buildout of the Viera master-planned community; building a strong leadership team; and advancing long-term strategies for Viera and beyond.

What is your definition of great leadership?

Great leadership is about building the right team, setting a clear long-term vision and empowering team members to execute it together with trust and accountability over individual talent alone. It involves driving down decision-making while emphasizing collaboration, continuity and culture, aligning the right people around a shared mission and letting them come together to do their best work.

If you could swap jobs for a day, whose job would you want?

Andrew Gucciardi, executive director of Hockey Helps the Homeless. He leads the organization in raising funds and awareness for homelessness through pro-am hockey tournaments and corporate fundraisers with NHL Alumni that benefit dozens of communities. He builds partnerships, organizes large-scale fundraising events and translates community engagement into direct housing and support services.

What is your go-to restaurant or coffee spot to build relationships and/or close deals?

There’s no one establishment I frequent to build relationships but rather its facilitated through many organizations I am actively involved with, including the Space Coast Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast, Junior Achievement of the Space Coast, Community Foundation for Brevard, Association for Florida Community Developers and the Urban Land Institute.

What’s a little-known fact about you?

 I am an active participant in various charitable hockey tournaments each year skating alongside NHL Alumni both in Toronto, Canada, where I was raised and here on Florida’s Space Coast. These efforts combine my love of hockey with direct community impact addressing causes deeply meaningful to me.

Source: Orlando Business Journal

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